


I Like This Tradition. Can We Do It Again?

by green78



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/F, Secret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-27
Updated: 2014-12-27
Packaged: 2018-03-03 20:53:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2887523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/green78/pseuds/green78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the Time, Space, & Chips Secret Santa Exchange. Vastra doesn't understand this whole Christmas thing, but if Jenny's going to celebrate, then so is she.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Like This Tradition. Can We Do It Again?

**Author's Note:**

> As mentioned in the summary, this was written for our Vastra at [Time, Space, & Chips](http://timespaceandchips.jcink.net/index.php?act=idx), a Doctor Who RPG site. (Yes, I am using the notes for shameless promotion. Please don't judge.)

It was Vastra’s second Christmas among humans and she  _still_ didn’t understand it. It was also, however, her first Christmas with Jenny, and Jenny had been fretting over the holiday since the beginning of December. She had tried to explain it all to Vastra, starting with the story of Christ, but the Silurian just couldn’t understand what a tall, decorated tree and the giving of gifts had to deal with the birth of a child in a dubious recollection of human history. Jenny had eventually given up, but her excitement had not waned. Vastra would have been perfectly content not to celebrate at all, but the ever-present light in the human’s eyes as she hummed various songs (“Christmas Carols,” she’d called them) around the house made the Silurian determined to give Jenny the best Christmas she could muster. She just had no idea how she was going to muster it.

There was only one person Vastra could turn to for help, but contacting him was nigh impossible. She was saved the trouble, though, when a knock came at the door late one night mid-December. The Silurian opened the door to find herself face-to-face with a tall, gangly man with wild brown hair, a pinstriped suit, a long coat, and the strangest pair of shoes. “Evening, Vastra!” he greeted her cheerfully.

“Thank the Goddess! Just the man I wanted to see!” she sighed with relief, pulling him into the house. He chuckled as she did so, admiring the place as he stepped through the door.

“Yes, I know,” he replied. “I got your message.”

Vastra frowned. “Message?”

The man – the Doctor – held up his psychic paper, and Vastra could see one of her more recent thoughts scrawled across the page in her handwriting. “You think awfully loudly, Madame Vastra. Now what’s all this about wanting a perfect Christmas?”

Thankful that her darling ape was out on errands, Vastra admitted, “It’s for Jenny.”

The Doctor’s grin all but split his face as he bounced up and down in delight. “Why, Madame Vastra! If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you want to do something special for the woman you love!” The Silurian pursed her lips in annoyance and it was all the confirmation the Doctor needed. “Oh, that’s just _brilliant_! Now, first off, have you thought about what you’re going to get her?”

Vastra sighed, gesturing for the Doctor to follow her into the living room. When they had both taken seats by the fire, Vastra began, “I am aware that people give each other gifts on Christmas, but I have no idea what humans consider to be ‘proper gifts.’ Silurians often present each other with weapons, but I’ve already given Jenny a new katana for training just last month. She likes to read, but our library already has so much to offer. She’s not one for fancy clothing, and she already has all the combat outfits she could ever need. I am at a complete loss, Doctor.”

“Does she have you?”

The question caught the Silurian off guard, and she gave the Doctor the most perplexed look. “Of course she has me.”

“Right, but does she _know_ she has you? Does she know how much she means to you?”

“I…I…”

The Doctor stood up and placed a hand on Vastra’s shoulder. “Start with a Christmas tree: a nice big pine that you can put right here in the living room, but not too close to the fireplace. That’s all you need to get things started.”

“Get _what_ started?!” the lizard-woman asked in exasperation.

The Doctor only grinned. “All in good time, Vastra. All in good time.”

…

“Do you like it?” Vastra ventured, trying to gauge Jenny’s reaction. Jenny, though, couldn’t speak – only gape at the sight before her. A beautiful pine tree had been brought into the living room – just small enough to fit but still tall and magnificent with the most perfect boughs for hanging ornaments. “I know it’s ape – ah…human tradition to have a tree at Christmas, but I must admit, I’m not entirely sure what to do with it.”

“Oh, ma’am, it’s _beautiful_!” Jenny breathed. “It’ll look gorgeous once all the ornaments and garlands are hung!”

“I’m…afraid I’m not sure what you mean,” Vastra admitted. Jenny turned and beamed at her, and her smile made the lizard-woman forget what she was worried about and why.

“I’ll teach you, ma’am. You’ll see.”

…

Jenny spent the next several days showing Vastra how to make garlands from paper and tinsel along with where and how to hang various baubles from the tree’s many boughs. They combined their various crafting skills to cobble together an angel for the very top, and when they were finished, the tree was a glorious sight to behold. Vastra still wasn’t sure she understood the history of Christmas, but she had to admit, the tradition of decorating a tree was one she found pleasing.

But the lizard-woman still had no idea what to give Jenny as a gift. She kept thinking back to the Doctor’s words about whether or not Jenny knew how much she meant to Vastra, but she still couldn’t puzzle out what she could possibly do to express this.

At least, not until five days before Christmas.

Jenny and Vastra were placing wreaths and candles around the house – everywhere. Jenny was standing on a ladder trying to reach the very top of the fireplace when she inevitably slipped, as Vastra knew she would. Therefore, rather than finding herself on the floor with broken bones, Jenny landed in the arms of a smirking lizard-woman.

“I _did_ warn you,” Vastra commented.

Jenny blushed. “What ever would I do without you, ma’am?” she quipped, trying to mask her embarrassment.

The lizard-woman chuckled as she set her down, though she didn’t take her arms from around Jenny’s waist. “Break both your legs for the sake of decorations, I imagine.”

It was Jenny’s turn to chuckle, her gaze never leaving Vastra’s. Unbidden, her eyes strayed to the Silurian’s lips for just a moment before meeting those crystal eyes once more. Blushing even further, Jenny cleared her throat and pulled away from Vastra, moving to take down the ladder she had fallen from.

While the Silurian was unfamiliar with the many idiosyncrasies of human behavior, the nature behind that particular signal was impossible to miss. The Doctor’s words rang in her mind as she watched the maid scurry from the room: _Does she_ know _she has you?_

Well, if she didn’t, she certainly would by Christmas morning.

…

“Merry Christmas, Jenny.”

Jenny, who had been preparing a tray of tea and breakfast for Madame Vastra, was so startled that said tray almost crashed to the floor. “You gave me a fright, Madame!” the woman exclaimed, putting a hand over her heart. “I didn’t expect you up this early!”

“Yes, well, I figured it being Christmas and all that I would join you for breakfast this morning. And I…have a gift for you.”

Jenny’s face fell, and Vastra was filled with a moment of panic until her maid admitted, “I’ve…not got something to actually give you, ma’am – not that fits under the tree, at least. I was going to make you your favorite dinner as a gift. I wasn’t really sure what else you’d like.”

To the maid’s surprise, Vastra chuckled, kneeling by the tree and gesturing for Jenny to join her. When the human obliged, the Silurian explained, “My gift is not the sort that can be wrapped either, and I do very much appreciate the promise of my favorite meal.” There was a moment of nervous silence before Vastra whispered, pleading, “Close your eyes?”

Jenny arched an eyebrow in curiosity, but complied nonetheless. There was another moment of silence, and Jenny was just about to ask what Vastra was waiting for when she felt the brush of cool lips against her own, tentative but wanting. The gentle touch lingered only briefly – not nearly long enough, Jenny thought – before Vastra pulled away. With a whimper, Jenny chased her lips forward until they met again, and the maid wrapped her arms around the lizard-woman’s neck to keep her from pulling away. Relieved and delighted, Vastra returned the embrace, holding Jenny close against her.

Neither knew how long that soul-baring kiss lasted before each reluctantly parted so they might meet each other’s gaze, breathless. “Would it be selfish of me, ma’am, to ask if you’d any more of those to give me?”

Vastra laughed and kissed her love again. “Not selfish at all, my dear. In fact, I must insist that you do.” Again, a kiss. “Oh, my darling Jenny,” the lizard-woman murmured, holding her tight.

Jenny reached up to run gentle fingertips along Vastra’s crest, making the Silurian shiver. “My darling Vastra,” she mimicked. When she met Vastra’s eyes again, there was a mischievous smirk on her face. “You know, ma’am, I just remembered…I think I have another gift for you…”

Disentangling from Vastra’s arms and rising to her feet, Jenny reached back and pulled the pins from her hair, letting the dark locks cascade over her shoulder. Backing slowly towards the stairs, she started fiddling with the buttons on her dress. Any nervousness she had felt about being so forward immediately disappeared at the sight of Vastra’s hungry gaze. The Silurian stood and lunged at Jenny, who danced away with a laugh and sprinted for the stairs. Vastra followed, each woman leaving a trail of clothing in her wake.

It was an…interesting Christmas tradition, to be sure, but a definite favorite at 13 Paternoster Row in the years to come.


End file.
